


I'll Come Back When You Call Me

by ParadoxProphet



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Character Death In Dream, Dreams, F/M, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Golden Deer Route, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Golden Deer Route Spoilers, Minor Balthazar von Adalbrecht | Balthus von Albrecht/Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc, Minor Lorenz Hellman Gloucester/Hilda Valentine Goneril, Minor Marianne von Edmund/Ignatz Victor, Past Caspar/OC, Past Lives, Pining, Repressed Memories, Tags May Change, Well sort of it's mostly the backdrop
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:54:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27308053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ParadoxProphet/pseuds/ParadoxProphet
Summary: Claude remembers his past life in Fodlan. How he won a war, married the love of his life, and brought an age of peace to two countries.Katrina does not remember her past life in Fodlan. But she has dreams of a strange world and could swear she's already met a lot of the people that enter her life.Both of them and many of their friends and enemies have been reborn in this new world, but very few of them remember their past lives. When the two of them reunite after many years apart, Claude decides to win her heart all over again, and maybe see if he can unlock her memories out of her dreams. But is that truly for the best? For perhaps remembering would be a greater pain than ignorance.
Relationships: Claude von Riegan/Original Female Character(s), Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc & Claude von Riegan
Kudos: 7
Collections: Reincarnation and Transmigration





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I was going to post this after I'd written the whole thing, but it's taking too long and I'm planning to start NaNoWriMo so I want to at least get started on posting this since I have a backlog of chapters I can post. Not sure how often updates will be though, I'll try to keep this updated throughout the month at least. Also I might come back and edit this chapter later, I didn't have the time to do it before posting it.
> 
> Enjoy even more of my self-indulgent bullshit.

Claude remembered Fodlan.

Ever since he was a kid, he had vivid memories of another world, a world with magic and pegasi and wyverns, a world with nobles and kings and emperors, a world with a war that he’d fought in and won. He remembered the names and faces of his allies, and his enemies. He remembered flying on the back of a wyvern, a mystical bow in hand as he shot down his enemies, and the wind blowing in his face. All of it felt real to him, as real as the normal life he lived. But he knew that in his normal life, he’d done none of those things.

He was just an average boy, he’d never fought in any war or fired an arrow because he was just a kid. A kid who went to school like any other and had a relatively normal family. In this world, there was no magic or pegasi or wyverns, those things were only in works of fantasy and fairy tales. Nobles and kings and emperors were considered to be from years past, still existing in a sense but not having any power. The allies and enemies never were real people, as far as he knew he was the only person who’d ever known about Fodlan. Even though the memories grew in number as he got older, he was about to give in to the possibility that it was all something he’d made up in his head his entire life.

At least, until he was ten years old.

\------------------------------------

It had been an ordinary Saturday, Claude had gone off to the local park with no real plans in particular. He figured he’d just kill some time until it got too late to stay out or until he got bored, maybe watch the clouds roll by while he thought about that fantastical world he’d made up in his head, but fate decided to take a different turn.

When he got there, the park had been pretty empty, and it seemed like it would stay that way until he heard a voice.

“Claude? Is that you?”

He froze in front of the swingset. He knew that voice. But it wasn’t one he recognized in this life, this was a voice he knew from the other world, one he had only heard in Fodlan. He turned around to the sound of the voice, a boy around his age with purple hair and purple eyes. He’d never met this boy before, but he instantly knew who he was.

“Yuri?”

The boy smirked. “So you do remember. Here I thought I was the only one.”

Yuri Leclerc, a man who had gathered connections and an information network throughout Fodlan, the leader of a house called the Ashen Wolves at a school that didn’t exist, an ally and a friend. Claude remembered him well. And he remembered Claude as well.

“So it’s not just something I made up, Fodlan was real. Everything that happened there was real.”

Yuri chuckled. “It was very much real. I guess I have some explaining to do.”

The two of them sat down on a bench as Yuri told him everything. Just like him, Yuri remembered everything about their past life. He remembered the Ashen Wolves, the war against Edelgard and the Adrestian Empire, all of it. He’d thought he was the only one, had nearly convinced himself it was something he made up, until he’d met someone else from that world.

At six years old, he’d met Hapi, another member of the Ashen Wolves. Unlike him however, she didn’t remember anything about her past life. Yuri had been a stranger to her when they met, but she still became his friend. Despite the fact that she didn’t remember anything, he’d found that Hapi had still been basically the same. She quickly started calling him Yuri bird, just as she’d done before. She didn’t sigh often, though it was for reasons much different than their last life. She’d even had knowledge of the stars just as she did before. She was different, but the same.

Yuri never told her about her past life, he figured if she didn’t remember then it was for the best. Plus she’d probably think he was crazy, talking about a world like Fodlan and saying she was there too. He felt it was best that she be left in ignorance, she’d be happier that way. Of course, that wouldn’t stop him from looking for the rest of the Ashen Wolves. If he and Hapi had been reborn into this world, Constance and Balthus must have as well.

“I did manage to learn about Constance,” he explained. “She’s a child actress, or is trying to be one at least. From the interviews I found, it seems like she doesn’t fully remember her past life.”

Claude raised an eyebrow at that. “Fully?”

“She mentioned at one point that she has dreams of a fantasy world, and that she bases her acting off of them,” Yuri said. “And from the sounds of them, those dreams could only be her old memories trying to surface. At least that’s my guess. I’d have to actually meet her to find out. I haven’t found Balthus though, granted he could take some time considering how much older he is. Hapi and I met through circumstance, really. Just as you and I have, I doubt you’ve met anyone else from Fodlan?”

Claude shook his head. “You’re the first person I’ve met. I was about to resign myself to believing it was all made up actually. But knowing that you’re around makes me feel like everyone else is, us meeting like this had to be fate,” A feeling of hope swelled in his chest. The others had to be brought back to this world too. It was only a matter of finding them. “We should meet up more often, talk about the good old days and update us on our findings.”

Yuri frowned, letting out a sigh. “That’s not possible. I’m not staying here for much longer.”

“You’re leaving? But why?”

“Even though we’ve been reborn into a new world and happier lives, I’ve noticed that while some things change, others stay similar if not outright the same,” Yuri explained, barely sounding like a ten year old. “For example, Hapi ran away from home though she doesn’t tell me why. She did the same in Fodlan, leaving her village behind in the hopes she’d find a better life. Meanwhile, I’m stuck in the foster care system, going from one home to the next. Not too unlike how in Fodlan I took different names and lived with different nobles to reach my goals. Similar circumstances, though not exactly the same. I can only assume your life has had those similarities as well?”

Claude thought for a moment. He’d never really thought of it before, but there were some similarities between his former life and this one. His parents had eloped despite disapproval from his mother’s side, and while he was no longer a prince facing assassination attempts there was one thing that didn’t go away even with a new world. He didn’t want to dwell on it now though. “Maybe. It’s not like I told you about myself back then so you can’t say for sure.” he said with a smirk.

Yuri shrugged his shoulders. “You always were fond of those secrets of yours. Anyway, my current foster family lives far away from here, I’m moving to their place in the next few days. Our meet-up was just luck.”

“It’s not luck, it’s fate,” Claude said, repeating an old line of his from a lifetime ago. “Still, that doesn’t mean we can’t keep in touch. We have phones after all,” He took out a piece of paper and a tiny pencil from his coat pocket, scribbling his number on it and handing it to Yuri. “There, now there’s no excuse. You and I are the only ones who remember Fodlan and the people from it, we have to stick together. Besides, this way we can let each other know if we’ve found anyone we’re looking for.”

Yuri took the paper and stashed it into his own coat pocket. “True. Anyone in particular I should keep an eye out for? I’m sure you want to find all the Golden Deer, but there must be someone in particular you’re looking for?”

Claude didn’t even need to think about that one. Of course there were multiple people he wanted to find, but one in particular stood out to him. One who always appeared in his memories more often than the others. One who made his heart skip a beat. “I think you know who that is.” he said.

Yuri just smirked. “I figured it was her. I’ll keep my eye out for her,” He stood up from the bench, clearly getting ready to leave. They’d spent a long time talking about the past, the sky had begun to turn orange from dusk setting in. “Though I don’t think you’ll have too much of a problem with her.”

Claude stood up as well, knowing he’d have to head home as well. “And that means?”

“Call it a hunch, but I think those of us from Fodlan are drawn towards each other, memories or no memories. Hapi and I met by chance, but she approached me and became my friend. And I chose to come to this park on one of those hunches alone. Wherever the others are, I’m sure you won’t have trouble with them.”

Claude knew he was right. He wasn’t sure how he knew, he just did. Perhaps it was his own hunch. The two of them parted ways, and Claude made it back home with the thoughts of his past life swimming through his head. Fodlan was real, maybe not in this world but it was real. Real enough for him and Yuri to remember it. That alone was enough to strengthen his resolve for years.

\-----------------------------------

As it turns out, years would be how long it would take to find anyone else.

Claude kept looking. Out on the streets, at school, anywhere he went he tried looking for someone he knew a lifetime ago. But it started to feel like his meeting with Yuri really had been nothing more than luck. They kept in touch, eventually switching from phones to Skype, and of course they spoke about the past. Most of their conversations consisted of it. Eventually, Yuri mentioned that he’d met Constance properly. Just as he thought, her dreams were of Fodlan, but her memories weren’t there. The dreams didn’t give her the entire picture, just scattered moments that weren’t near enough to have her remember.

“I managed to convince her to tell me about her dreams,” Yuri told him one night, when Claude was 15 years old. “It’s amazing how she can’t actually remember that they happened though, sometimes they get so vivid it’s a wonder she doesn’t get it yet.”

Claude laughed. “Well, that’s Constance for you,” A thought crossed his mind, one that had been gnawing at him for a while. “Hey Yuri, do you think it’s possible for her to remember everything? I mean, the dreams are clearly the same things we remember, so it’s possible right?”

Yuri went silent for a moment, before letting out a sigh. “I’m not sure. It’s possible, but we don’t have much to work on. It’s different from Hapi though, I doubt she’ll ever remember. It’s been so many years that I think she’s just better off the way she is.”

“Have you ever thought to try and get Constance to remember?” Claude asked, taking a sip from the can of cola he’d gotten out of the fridge earlier.

Yuri went silent again. “Claude, you’re not asking this because of Constance are you?”

“Can’t hide anything from you when it comes to this, huh?”

“No, your usual tight lips seem to get loose when we talk about this,” He could hear the smile in Yuri’s voice. “But it’s clear that you want to know because of her.”

While his question easily gave off his intentions, he wasn’t about to be obvious with his emotions. Even though secrecy wasn’t needed in this life, old habits die hard. Claude spoke calmly. “I mean, she’s out there somewhere, I just know it. But I won’t know if she remembers until we meet.”

“Just don’t get your hopes up, okay?” Yuri asked. “For now I’m going to let Constance think it’s all just dreams. If there’s any sign she might remember something, I’ll let you know.”

“I know you will.”

Three years passed and things didn’t seem to change. Nothing ever seemed to trigger Constance’s memory, not that Claude ever asked. He figured Yuri would tell him if it did. Claude eventually found himself going to college in another city, he did well enough to get accepted into a pretty good school. And while he hoped he’d find someone he knew there, as his parents drove up with him to help him get settled in, he’d find more than he expected.

As he wandered around the campus, he noticed familiar faces. A lot of familiar faces. They didn’t notice him, all of them too preoccupied with other things to pay attention to other students, but he noticed them. Mercedes and Annette were sitting on a bench, laughing about something Mercedes was showing on her phone. Raphael and Leonie were arm wrestling at a picnic table, stuck in a stalemate. Marianne was sitting underneath the shade of a tree, feeding the nearby animals with a smile on his face. He was so caught up with watching the others that he ended up bumping into someone and knocking them over.

“Woah, sorry about that! Wasn’t paying attention to where I was going! You need any help there-”

“Claude?”

He looked down at who he’d knocked over, seeing none other than Ignatz lying there in front of him. And from the tone of his voice and the stunned look in his eye it was clear that he also remembered. Claude smiled as he held his hand out for him to take. “Good to see you, Ignatz.”

He pulled the startled artist up to his feet, helping him collect the notebooks and sketchpads he’d dropped. It was clear that he had a lot he wanted to say and ask, but Claude knew now wasn’t the time. As he had done so years before, he pulled out a scrap of paper and a pencil and scrawled out his phone number on it, giving it to Ignatz. “You seem a bit busy right now. Text me later and I’ll fill you in on the details.”

Ignatz took the paper, nodding silently in agreement. They definitely had some information to exchange. He put it away in his bag and rushed off, Claude watching him go. It was a comfort, knowing a third person remembered. He’d have to tell Yuri later about it.

“Lorenz, please stop talking, you’re giving me a headache!”

“I take all the trouble to come to the same university as you two and this is the thanks I get? Unbelievable!”

“Oh lighten up, I’m sure she’s happy to see you again after all this time, she’s just joking!”

Claude heard a trio of familiar voices behind him, and he swore his heart would stop at the sound of them. He turned around, spotting a group of three walking down the pathway.

The first was the sole man in the group, with dark purple hair tied in a ponytail that trailed down his right shoulder and a rose shaped pin on the left side of his no doubt expensive jacket. Lorenz.

The second was a bubbly young woman, her pink hair tied into long pigtails that accentuated her innocent image. Hilda.

The third, directly in the center of the group, was the one person he’d been searching for for the past eight years. Long, wavy brown hair framed her face, a purple t-shirt standing out among her black pants and hoodie. It was her, no doubt about it. It was Katrina.

Katrina von Richter, the woman whose memory had haunted him from a young age. In his past life, he’d come to know her rather well thanks to her family insisting on an arranged marriage, and the two of them had fallen in love. While the war had led to complications, they’d managed to reunite after five years and fought side by side during the war. She was the woman he’d married, let her know his secrets, and the most clear thing in his memories of Fodlan. Seeing her all these years, he’d still fallen in love with her and had hoped to find her again, and there she was. Standing in front of him. Eighteen years he’d lived in this new world without her, and now, seeing her again yet for the first time, a part of him never wanted to be without her again.

As much as he wanted to talk to her, she was clearly busy arguing about something with Lorenz while Hilda tried to settle things. It just wasn’t the right time. All he could do was watch her pass by with a smile, the time would come when he could talk to her and learn if she remembered him or not. For now, he was simply happy to have finally found her.

\--------------------------------

A few days passed as classes began and Claude settled himself into the campus life. He hadn’t heard from Ignatz yet and he was too busy to talk to Yuri, so any discussions would have to wait. But the moment came when he’d get to speak to Katrina.

He walked into a lecture hall for another new class, and as he searched for a place to sit he quickly found her reading a book waiting for class to start. No one was sitting next to her, it was perfect. Without hesitation, he walked up the stairs and made his way to where she sat, probably walking a bit too fast in the process.

“Excuse me, is this seat taken?” he asked, hiding his excitement at finally getting to speak to her after so many years. He didn’t want to open up with anything about Fodlan, he had to find out if she remembered him through her own actions. He knew her well enough that he’d know if she recognized him.

She looked up from her book, realizing someone was talking to her and turned to face him. For a moment she didn’t say anything, just looking at him confused. He couldn’t gauge her reaction. Finally, she spoke. “Oh! Um, yeah! I mean, no, it’s not! You can sit there if you want.”

He smirked, still unsure as to whether she recognized him. “Thanks. Hopefully I won’t distract you too much.” He took his seat as she rolled her eyes at his comment. They sat there in silence, the uncertainty of her behavior eating him up on the inside. After some time, she finally closed her book and looked at him.

“Okay, look, this is gonna sound really stupid but I just have to ask! Do I...know you?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit long, but it's intended to be the counterpart to the last chapter and I gotta put in the lore.
> 
> Anyway, in case you're not reading the fic I posted up yesterday The Night Will Be Over Soon, here's a rundown for how I'm updating this. I have a good amount of chapters pre-written for this already, and I have just enough that I can update this on Saturdays for the entire month. So every Saturday I'll be uploading a new chapter of this. The other fic is my first attempt at NaNoWriMo so that's gonna be my major focus until the month is over. Once November is done, I'll be working on chapters for both fics as I get them done and will go back and forth between them.
> 
> Also, both fics do involve Katrina but they're not connected to each other, so you don't have to read them both if you don't want to. The only major difference is that some backstory stuff and other details might only be in one fic or the other. So do what you like!

By all accounts, Katrina was an ordinary girl.

Well, that wasn’t completely true, she most certainly had her quirks and oddities, but she did not remember Fodlan. If the name were to be spoken to her, it would mean absolutely nothing. She knew nothing of a world where magic and pegasi and wyverns were real, she knew nothing of a world of nobles and kings and emperors, and she certainly knew nothing about a war. To her, the only world she knew was real was the one she lived in. However, there were two things about Katrina that were odd, at least in her mind.

The first oddity was her dreams. While most people dreamed of flying, falling without a parachute, or going to school in their underwear, she had dreams that she thought were recurring. Truthfully, she couldn’t tell if they were, but the settings always seemed to be the same, the people always familiar, at least from what little she could remember. The people were never in full focus it seemed, she could never remember their faces or voices, not even names stuck with her. When she woke up, no matter how hard she tried to focus on them the images would go blurry or fade altogether, only the faintest of details remaining. She eventually took to writing down her dreams, in the hopes she could eventually piece them together.

The second oddity was her specific sense of deja vu. Specific in that it only ever happened around people and only a few in particular. Upon meeting a person, she’d get the sense that she knew them somehow, even if they’d never met before. Not only that, but she also seemed to be able to pin down aspects of their personality and if they’d be friendly or not. Over the years, she tried to figure out if there was any connection between them, but she could never find one that tied them all together.

The first time it happened was when she was six years old.

\--------------------------------

Her family had recently moved somewhere new, and to her it was one of the worst things that could ever happen. She knew no one, had no friends, and was afraid of having to get used to a new school. Her parents were aware of this, and were desperate to find a solution. Thankfully, it seemed her father’s boss just so happened to have a son around her age, who just so happened to be in need of a friend. And so they set up a playdate.

She knew he was coming, her parents reminded her of it all the time, but she didn’t know what would happen when he came. But the moment Lorenz Gloustcer walked through her door she felt it. One look at him and she felt like she’d known him for longer than she’d been alive.

And she didn’t like him.

She could just tell that he was haughty, uptight, full of himself. Just one look at his face told her everything. And yet, she couldn’t fully hate him. That same sense of familiarity was telling her he’d be a friend. An annoying friend, but a trustworthy one. And at this point she didn’t exactly know anyone else, she couldn’t be picky, so Lorenz it was.

Strangely though, the sense of deja vu that she’d had didn’t seem to go through him. Lorenz acted as if they were strangers, which they were until then, but he didn’t have any familiarity with her as she did with him. She’d confirmed it himself when, once the two had finally been left alone, she asked if they knew each other. He’d replied with a confused no, saying it as if it should be obvious.

“But I feel like I’ve met you before!” she insisted.

“You’re mistaking me for someone else then. But I guess I just have that kind of face that’s recognizable?” he said with a chuckle. She felt like punching him in the face, but she didn’t want to get in trouble so she resisted the urge.

From that point on, Lorenz would be her first friend whether she liked it or not. He stuck to her side like glue, even insisting throughout the entirety of second grade that he was her best friend. Which was technically true, if you only have one friend they’d be your best friend by default, but she hated whenever he said it. But no matter how much he got on her nerves, she kept him around. Even after the second time she felt that sense of familiarity.

\------------------------------------

She was seven years old, she and Lorenz had just started third grade and were once again in the same class to Katrina’s chagrin. She began to worry that it would be a repeat of the year prior, having no one but Lorenz to call her friend. But the first day of school, they were approached by a girl named Hilda during lunch.

Just as before, Katrina felt as if she knew Hilda but didn’t know why. And she got an idea of what she was like. Sweet and friendly, but lazy and a bit of a gossip. Again, she was a friend she could trust, she just knew it. Which is why against Lorenz’s protests, she let Hilda sit at their table. He quickly warmed up to her though.

Once again, Katrina asked if they’d met before, thinking that maybe they’d been in the same class together but never talked. And once again she was met with confusion.

“No, we definitely weren’t in the same class or anything,” Hilda said, sneakily stealing one of Lorenz’s cookies while he wasn’t looking. “I’ve never seen you two before today, I just wanted to sit at your table.”

“Huh? But I thought for sure you felt familiar…” Katrina mumbled.

“Katrina, you asked the same thing to me when we first met,” Lorenz said, reminding her of their awkward first meeting. “You’re not going to ask this question to everyone we meet, are you?”

“No, Lorenz, I’m not!” she said, sticking her tongue out at him. But she would keep true to that. She figured that twice was enough to prove that her deja vu was just some weird feeling she couldn’t control. Maybe it meant nothing.

Hilda would remain as the third member of their strange little trio of friends, serving as a respite from Lorenz’s annoyance and being someone she could give the title of best friend to, despite Lorenz’s protests that she quickly ignored. Though he still insisted he was her best friend sometimes. The three of them were rarely seen apart, even though Katrina still felt like someone was missing for reasons she couldn’t explain.

It wouldn’t take long for her to find another person she felt she knew, though it wasn't what she expected.

\----------------------------------------------

It was only a month after she’d met Hilda, not long after her eighth birthday. She’d been walking home from school after getting off the bus, one of the few times she did that, when she’d tripped on nothing and fell down onto the sidewalk. In the process, her knee had been scraped and a huge hole had formed in her pants exposing the scraped knee. She felt herself starting to cry when she heard the sound of footsteps rushing towards her.

“Hey kid! You okay?”

Katrina looked up at the figure in front of her, that sense of familiarity hitting her again. Unlike Lorenz and Hilda, who’d been her age, the guy in front of her was clearly much older. A teenager by the looks of it, and one who played some kind of sport. Normally she’d be intimidated by someone so much older than her, but she felt like he was a trustworthy guy who’d keep her safe. Not the brightest, but his heart was in the right place. Even without Lorenz’s words about not asking if she knew people, she wouldn’t ask this guy if they’d met before. Even with her deja vu telling her he was nice, teenagers were still scary to her.

She didn’t have the chance to answer his question before he noticed her newly ripped pants and the blood on her knee. “Shoot, that doesn’t look good. Don’t worry kid, I can help patch you up!” He pulled a first aid kit out of his backpack, fishing out a large bandage and sticking it over her knee. “There we go! Guess Holst was right about this coming in handy! Let me help you get back up,” He held his hand out to her, which she readily took, helping her back on her feet. Standing up straight made her realize just how much taller he was, even for a teenager he was big. “Sorry I can’t fix your pants, I’m not a miracle worker. You want me to help you get home?”

She shook her head, a sniffle escaping her. “I know where to go from here, thanks for the band aid, big bro.”

She froze. She had absolutely no idea why she called him that. She had an older brother, no idea where he was though, and this was not him. But for some reason, calling him that felt...right. Like it was completely natural.

“‘Big Bro’? That’s not my name!” he laughed. “I’m Balthus! But you can call me your big bro if you want! What’s your name? I should know yours so I don’t keep calling you ‘kid’.”

Thank goodness, he didn’t care about the slip-up. “I’m Katrina.”

“Katrina, huh? That’s a nice name! Well, if you can get home by yourself then I’ll leave you to it. But let me help you dry those tears first, I’d be a lousy bro if I left you all sad like that!” The two of them went to the corner store nearby, Balthus grabbed a bag of sour gummy worms and paid for it before giving it to her. “You like this kind of candy?” he’d asked, grinning when she nodded her head. “Alright, you take that home and try not to trip again, okay little sis?” She nodded her head again as they walked out of the store. “Awesome! See ya!”

With a wave goodbye, Balthus left, leaving Katrina with a bag of candy and a smile. She wondered if she’d ever see Balthus again, and she did. Many times. Turns out he was friends with Hilda’s big brother and he came over to hang out often. His visits happened to coincide with Katrina’s often, leading to the two of them becoming practically as close as actual siblings. She couldn’t have asked for a better “big brother”.

\-----------------------------------------

It wouldn’t be until middle school that she’d feel the deja vu again. Lorenz and Hilda had stuck by her side as her friends, and in eighth grade Hilda would bring another girl into the group she’d met in another class. Her name was Marianne. She was shy, had self-esteem issues, and had a love for animals, just as Katrina had known before she’d said a word. She was quiet, but sweet, and made a nice addition to their friend group. Hilda especially liked her, even telling Katrina not to think Marianne was replacing her as a best friend.

Lorenz went to a fancy private school the next year, leaving the three girls to attend high school without him. Katrina wouldn’t admit that she’d miss him, but Hilda picked up on it. Though she seemed to miss him more. She kept feeling that sense of familiarity, experiencing it again that first year when she met Linhardt. He was sleepy, focused on only things that interested him, and rather blunt, just as she knew he’d be. It wasn’t a surprise to learn he was on the spectrum like she was, which led to their friendship. He didn’t join the group with Hilda and Marianne, but it was okay. He didn’t seem like the type of person who wanted to hang out with a group of girls anyway.

He did surprise her though when he mentioned his best friend had a crush on her but was too nervous to admit it. Leading her to meet Caspar, who also gave her that familiar feeling, one stronger than any she'd felt before. He was loud, energetic, and had a tendency to act first, which was no surprise to her. He also had ADHD, like she did, and they did end up dating for a while. It didn’t last, though they remained friends after the fact. She told him it was because she worried if things would last after high school, but in reality it was because of a factor she was too afraid to bring up to him. That, and she had a strange feeling that someone else was waiting for her. She loved him, but her heart hadn’t led her astray before so she trusted it.

She didn’t understand it, but her life was going to change in a drastic way.

\---------------------------------------------

The first day of college. She’d managed to get into the local university, though she wasn’t staying on campus since her home was close by enough that she could take the bus. She did however go with Hilda to help her get everything into her dorm. Just about all of their friends had gotten into the same college too, so at least she wouldn’t have to worry about that. However, it also meant something she’d been worried about had happened. Lorenz had come back.

“Hilda! Katrina! How long has it been?” he asked, running across them while they looked around campus. He was sporting a new hairstyle, thank god, but he was unmistakably Lorenz.

“Lorenz! It’s so good to see you again!” Hilda said, leaping at him to hug him and nearly knocking him over in the process.

“Yeah, it’s great, I’m so excited to see you again.” Katrina stated, rolling her eyes. Even if she’d secretly missed him, she’d been hoping she was finally rid of her clingy childhood friend. Guess it was too much to ask for.

He proceeded to join them as they explored the campus, going on and on about the past four years at his fancy private school. He didn’t give them a chance to speak up, not that Hilda seemed to care. Katrina tried to drown him out but wasn’t able to, she regretted not bringing her iPod with her. Eventually, enough was enough.

“Lorenz, please stop talking, you’re giving me a headache!” she finally spoke up.

Lorenz gasped, taken aback by her outburst. “I take all the trouble to come to the same university as you and this is the thanks I get? Unbelievable!”

Hilda laughed awkwardly, clearly trying to think of how to diffuse the situation. “Oh lighten up, I’m sure she’s happy to see you again after all this time, she’s just joking!”

“I’m well aware we haven’t gotten along as children, Katrina, but surely we can put that behind us now that we’re adults? This behavior is so childish, you know.”

“Well, maybe once you pull that stick out of your ass, I will.” Hilda giggled at the comment, while Lorenz looked on in shock. He was clearly exaggerating though. Out of the corner of her eye, Katrina spotted a flash of yellow, but she couldn’t find the source of it when she tried to look.

“Ooooooo, Katrina! I think that guy was looking at you!” Hilda said with a sing-song lilt in her voice.

“Guy? What guy?”

“You mean you didn’t see him? There was a cute guy looking our way!” She turned her head, trying to find whoever she was talking about, but with no success it seemed. “Huh, he was just there! Where’d he go?”

“And what exactly makes you think he was looking at her specifically?” Lorenz asked. “He could’ve been taking in my impressive good looks, you know.”

“No, he was looking at Katrina for sure. He did look at all of us, but he kept looking at her with a big smile on his face! I think he’s got a crush on you!”

“People look at other people all the time, Hilda, I doubt this random guy has a crush on me.”

“Oh, let me have my fun!”

That was weird. Why would a guy be looking at her? Hilda had to be imagining things. It was the only explanation that made sense. ...Right?

\----------------------------------------------

The first few days of college passed without much fanfare. She went to her classes, ate lunch with Lorenz and Hilda, and took the bus home. She figured nothing else of importance would happen, that is until her first history class of the semester.

She didn’t want to take it, but she figured it was best to get it out of the way now rather than later. At least it was in a lecture hall so she wouldn’t have to worry about the professor noticing her getting distracted. She’d sat down in a seat and pulled out the book she was reading, figuring she could finish the chapter before class started.

“Excuse me, is this seat taken?”

Or maybe not. She turned to look at the guy who asked her, and Katrina thought she felt her heart skip a beat. In front of her was a guy with wild brown hair, a single small braid hanging on his right side. He had a smirk on his face, his green eyes looking directly at her. But most importantly, he gave her a sense of familiarity stronger than she’d ever felt before, even more so than Caspar. He was a troublemaker, charming, and a good leader, she could tell that, but she also felt like she could trust him without question. She wanted him to stay. She had to know more about this guy and why he felt more familiar than anyone she’d ever met.

“Oh! Um, yes! I mean no! It’s not! You can sit there if you want.” she managed to stammer out, feeling like an idiot in the process.

But he didn’t seem to mind. “Thanks, hopefully I don’t distract you too much.” He took the seat next to her, her rolling her eyes at the comment. At least he didn’t care that she acted so weird. She tried to go back to her book, needing a moment to recover from that bad first impression, but she could barely focus as questions about him came to mind. Who is he? Why is her deja vu towards him so different from everyone else? Why won’t her heart stop racing? Why is he being so quiet?!

Eventually it was too much. She had to say something, even if she told Lorenz she wouldn’t all those years ago. She shut her book, abandoning it for now and looked over at him. “Okay, look, this is gonna sound really stupid but I just have to ask! Do I...know you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually did have to edit this chapter because the original draft had so many instances of "deja vu" in it that it actually annoyed me and I didn't want it to be so repetitive. You're welcome.
> 
> Also, autistic Linhardt and ADHD Caspar are things you can rip from my cold dead hands.


	3. Chapter 3

Claude felt surprised by the question, though he refused to let it show. Did she just ask if he knew her? If he was being honest with himself, he didn’t expect Katrina to remember anything and he would’ve been okay with that. But this was something else. He had to learn more. He continued to smile as he met her eyes. “Maybe. Any reason in particular you think so?”

Katrina became very interested in her shoes at that moment, unable to look him in the face. “I...I don’t know, I just feel like we’ve met somewhere before,” She knew it was a stupid question, why did she even bother asking it? “Just forget it, it was a dumb question, I’ve felt this before and it never meant anything.”

Now there was an interesting little bit of information. “You’ve felt what before?”

She sighed, now she had to explain. “Promise you won’t laugh?”

He flashed her a grin. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“So, ever since I was a kid, I’ve had this specific sense of deja vu or familiarity, I guess. I meet people and it just feels like I’ve met them before, even if I haven’t. It happened with my friends, people I met in high school, my ex-boyfriend, and now you,” She kept glancing at his face, just waiting for him to start laughing anyway or get a weird look on his face. “Not only that, but I also somehow know what they’re like. Well, not completely, but I just know stuff about them instantly.”

Claude’s face never changed, this was an interesting factor. He’d definitely have to tell Yuri about this. “Really? And what’d it tell you about me?”

Katrina smirked at him, was this guy trying to flirt with her? “It told me you were trouble.”

“Fair enough, I’ve been known to be quite the schemer. This deja vu of yours is right on the money.” He leaned back in his seat.

The professor walked into the lecture hall, gathering the attention of all the students. Looks like their conversation would have to be cut short. “Hey,” Katrina whispered. “All jokes aside, I like you and I want to know more about you. Wanna have lunch with me and my friends?”

Of course he did. He still had questions to ask after all. Katrina seemed to be a unique case and he just had to find out more. “I’d be happy to. You know, you never told me your name. I think I’d like to know who I’m having lunch with.”

“Ugh, of course I’d forget to do that. I’m Katrina. Katrina Richter.” She held out her hand. He took it happily, taking joy in how warm it felt even in this new world.

“Claude Riegan. Happy to cross paths with you, Katrina.”

She smiled. Claude…she liked that name.

\----------------------------------------------

Katrina couldn’t help but wait for him outside of the dining hall. She was excited honestly. Claude was intriguing, different from everyone else she’d met. But she couldn’t place how exactly. She needed to know more about him, get to know him outside of that stuffy lecture hall. Besides, it never hurt to add a new friend to their group! Hilda was sure to like him, and Marianne was shy but warmed up quickly to people. She didn’t even want to think about Lorenz though, mostly because she didn’t care.

“Well well, you were waiting for me? You flatter me, my lady,” A sudden voice startled her, snapping her out of her thoughts. There he was, standing in front of her with that grin again. Though it seemed to disappear for a moment. “Sorry, did I startle you?”

“...A little bit.” she admitted.

He nervously laughed. “Whoops, didn’t mean to do that. I’ll be careful next time,” He began to make his way in, pausing only to look back at her for a moment. “Maybe.”

She followed after him. “You really are trouble, aren’t you?”

“You’re the one who knows, aren’t you?”

“Oh right, I almost forgot,” They stopped walking, Claude tilting his head slightly. “About the deja vu thing, don’t bring it up to my friends please?”

“Alright, why not?” He figured the rest wouldn’t remember, but not bringing it up at all seemed a bit strange.

“Most people act like I’m being crazy when I bring it up. Or at least Lorenz does. He was the first one it happened with and he’s always gotten on my case about it if I ever mention it. I eventually just stopped asking people about it. You’re the first person I’ve met who hasn’t acted weird about it. I just don’t want Lorenz bitching at me. He really sucks, but I can’t get him to go away.”

Yep, that sounded like Lorenz. He wasn’t at all surprised that their relationship was like that, she’d never gotten along with him back in Fodlan. Multiple times she’d storm into a room and rant about something he said that had pissed her off. His insistence about what it meant to be a noble was usually the problem. Things had gotten better between them by the time they all fought in the war, but clearly things weren’t at that point yet.

At that moment, Claude felt a bit upset. Not at Lorenz, but at the fact that he couldn’t do much to help her. When they were in Fodlan, he could take hold of her hand and tell her not to worry about him, help her feel better with calming words and gestures. But he couldn’t do that now. They’d only just met in her eyes, he was still practically a stranger, doing something like that would only weird her out. And the last thing he wanted to do was chase her away after searching for so long.

“I doubt he’s that bad,” he said, trying to ignore the small ache in his chest. “I mean, don’t all friend groups have that one annoying guy who you can’t get rid of?”

She smiled back at him. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. Better him than me, I guess."

The two of them grabbed some food and made their way towards a table where three people were already sitting and talking with each other. It was Lorenz, Hilda, and Marianne. Hilda was laughing about something before noticing the two of them and waving them over. “There you are Katrina! We’ve been waiting for you for like, ten minutes! Do you know how long that is?”

“Yeah, it’s ten minutes,” Katrina retorted as she set her food down. “Besides, I was waiting on someone.”

Lorenz looked up at Claude and didn’t bother hiding a scowl. “And just who is he and why is he here?” he asked, not even bothering to hide the venom in his voice. Claude expected that, Lorenz hadn’t exactly been his biggest fan before.

“The name’s Claude,” he began, sitting down next to Katrina. “Katrina invited me to have lunch with you.”

“Did she now,” Lorenz stated, crossing his arms. “And just where did you come from?”

“Lorenz, cut it out. We met in my history class this morning,” Katrina said, glaring at him all the while. “You get this way with every guy I meet, it’s getting old. I’m allowed to make friends with other guys, you know.”

“I am simply making sure you don’t get involved with anyone shady who might badly influence you. It’s my duty as a best friend.”

“You’re not my best friend, Lorenz. You’re not even close to the top of the list. Claude’s higher up than you.”

Lorenz’s mouth hung open, looking offended she would make such a claim. “Oh lighten up, Lorenz! You’re taking this too personally, it’s not like he’s gonna murder you!” Hilda laughed. She turned her attention towards Claude. “I’m Hilda, it’s nice to meet you Claude! The grumpy grape over here is Lorenz, and this shy sweetheart is Marianne! She’s a little quiet around new people, don’t mind that, it’s nothing personal.”

Marianne had taken interest in her plate as the conversation had gone on, though she managed to look up at him for a moment. “Hello… It’s nice to meet you…” she mumbled.

“Likewise,” Claude said. He hadn’t expected anything else from these three. Just as he thought, none of them recognized him which meant they probably didn’t remember who he was. That was okay though, he figured finding a ton of people who did remember was just wishful thinking. What he got with Katrina was more than enough. “So the four of you have known each other for long?”

“Yes, actually,” Lorenz said, his scowl replaced with a smug smirk. “Hilda and I have been Katrina’s friends since we were children. We’re her closest friends.”

“Really? Because I don’t recall thinking of you as a close friend.” Katrina stated.

“How could I not be? I’ve known you the longest!”

“That doesn’t mean shit, and you know it.”

“We met Marianne back in middle school,” Hilda interrupted. “She’s been part of our group ever since!” Marianne just nodded her head.

It made sense. Claude had always been the outsider back in Fodlan, so for all of them to have met as kids and still be friends now was no surprise. Of course he wouldn’t meet them until now. It’s like Yuri had told him all those years ago: things stayed similar if not outright the same. He felt happy though, knowing in this life Katrina had grown up with friends. The Katrina he’d known had been sheltered, not a friend to her name until circumstances had them meet. But this Katrina had grown up with a group of friends, possibly more than the ones sitting in front of him, and they’d been the people he’d trust the most to be her friends. He couldn’t help but chuckle, causing them all to look at him.

“Is something about us amusing you, Claude?” Lorenz asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Oh, no, sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh. It’s just you all remind me of some friends from my old school.” It wasn’t a lie, not really. Sitting here listening to them talk reminded him of his days back in the Officers Academy, sitting in the Dining Hall with the rest of the Golden Deer house and listening to their banter. He’d missed this, spending time with them all.

The girls all smiled at his words, but Lorenz didn’t seem convinced. “Katrina, why exactly did you invite him here? We don’t even know him and you expect us to just be fine and dandy with him?”

Katrina glared at him, gripping the sandwich in her hand tightly. “Why is he bothering you so much? He hasn’t even done anything, Lorenz! What the fuck is your pro-”

“No wait, let me guess, you got that ‘feeling’ of yours again didn’t you? That feeling that you know him despite never meeting him before, am I wrong?”

“Lorenz, stop it, you know that’s a sensitive subject for her!” Hilda whispered, though it was more like a stage whisper. Marianne appeared to be praying in her seat, though her voice was too quiet to hear.

“No wait, it’s probably those idiotic dreams of yours. The ones in that ridiculous fantasy world. You do love to bring them up to anyone who’ll listen, and he probably ate them up!”

“Lorenz! That’s enough-”

Katrina’s hands slammed on the table as she stood up, causing everyone at the table to stop and look at her. Claude glanced up and it was clear as day that she was holding back tears. “I’m leaving, I’m not hungry anymore.” she said, taking her things and walking out. Her uneaten food was left behind.

“Lorenz, what is wrong with you?!” Hilda asked, causing the young man to shrink into his seat. “You know those things are hard for her to talk about! Just because you don’t like Claude, it doesn’t give you the right to behave that way! You better apologize to her later for behaving like that!”

Lorenz sighed. “You’re right, I don’t know why I went there,” He looked up at Claude, who’d been gathering up her leftover food. “I must apologize to you as well. There is no excuse for my behavior. I can only hope you’ll forgive me.”

“Don’t worry about it, I’ve heard worse if you can believe it.” Claude said, not looking away from the food he’d tied up into a bundle of napkins. He moved to his own lunch, putting it all into a napkin bundle as well. He was curious what he meant by her dreams, but he had bigger priorities right now.

“Hilda, should we go find her?” Marianne asked, still staring at the exit.

“I’ll go find her, I’ve already got her lunch and all,” Claude said, taking the opportunity to speak up before Hilda could. He looked over at them, a smile still on his face. “It really was nice to meet you all, even you Lorenz. I’m not taking things personally. Maybe next time though, we can have lunch without any arguments.” With that, he grabbed the napkin bundles and walked out, leaving the other three behind.

He didn’t have to go far to find her. She’d gone outside the building, sitting on the steps curled up into herself. As he got closer he could hear faint sniffling. He couldn’t keep his frown hidden. He was worried this was the case. Slowly, he moved down the stairs and sat down beside her. “Katrina?” he said, not wanting to startle her.

She looked up at him, trying to wipe away the tears on her face. This was the last thing she wanted him to see, they’d barely known each other and she was already crying. How pathetic. “Claude, I’m so sorry about that. Lorenz is an asshole, I don’t know why he’s acting like this, it's never happened before.”

“I don’t care about Lorenz, I’m more worried about you,” He handed her the napkin bundle containing her food. “Here, I have a feeling you’re still hungry. Can’t let good food go to waste, right?” She didn’t say anything, but she took it, opening it up to find the sandwich and fries she’d left behind. She took a bite out of her sandwich with a sniffle. Claude opened up his food as well, letting them eat in silence. She needed a moment to calm down before he could do anything.

So they sat in silence, eating their food and enjoying the weather. Claude still had to resist holding her hand though. Not yet, he kept telling himself, the time wasn’t right. It’d come though, he just had to be patient. And he could be patient as long as he needed to.

Before long, her sniffling stopped and her lunch was gone. She looked over at him, attempting to smile even though an occasional tear still slipped. “Thanks. I didn’t mean to leave you there, I just-”

“You needed to get out of there before you exploded on him and made things worse, right?”

She blinked. “...Yeah, actually. How did you know?”

“I’ve seen that kind of situation before. More than once,” He placed a hand on her shoulder, figuring it was a gesture that wouldn’t be seen as weird. “Seriously though, don’t worry about it. He apologized anyway.”

Katrina felt a warmth through her shirt where Claude had placed his hand. It...felt nice. She couldn’t explain why, but it felt so familiar and comforting. She didn’t want him to move it, but didn’t admit so out loud out of worry it’d sound strange. “Wow, that’s a first. Didn’t expect Lorenz to own up to something like that.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, what’d he mean by your dreams? Is there something wrong with them?” He approached the subject as carefully as possible, he figured he already knew the answer but he had to hear it for himself.

She sighed, of course he’d ask about it now that it’d been brought up. “This is probably gonna sound weirder than my deja vu, just so you know.”

“I listened to that, didn’t I?”

She took a deep breath, trying to think about how she should go about this. “Okay, so, I’ve been having recurring dreams ever since I was a kid. The only reason I feel they’re recurring is that they always seem to take place in the same locations. And the same people are always there, or I think they are. I can never see their faces, they always seem blurry or only one detail will be made clear to me like their eyes or something. I can’t remember their voices either when I wake up, I try to but they feel muffled, far away. It all takes place in a fantasy world, people can use magic and ride pegasi and things like that! But the details escape me all the time. I started writing them down, or at least what I can remember whenever I wake up. I thought I could figure things out that way, but I still have trouble remembering them. Most days I forget to write it down. But I figure these dreams have to mean something, all dreams do, so I keep trying.”

Claude felt his heart skip a beat. It was as he thought. She had the dreams. Her memories of Fodlan were still there, locked away by the fog of dreams. He wondered if maybe it was possible that she could remember completely…

No, it was too early to think about that kind of thing, he had to meet up with Ignatz and talk to Yuri first. But there had to be a way, he wanted to believe there was. He just had to find it.

“Lorenz thinks they don’t mean anything, he just thinks I’ve watched too many movies, but I don’t want to give him the satisfaction he might be right.”

“Well, I think he’s wrong. Maybe I can help you figure them out? It sounds like a fun idea at least.”

Katrina blinked. “You mean, you don’t think it’s weird?”

Claude shrugged. “Why would I?”

“Let me see your phone for a sec,” He did as she asked and handed her his phone. She opened up his contacts, deciding not to bring up how bare bones they were, and quickly added in her number. “There, now I can talk to you whenever I want. Send me a text as soon as you can so I can have your number in my phone, okay?”

Claude smiled back at her. “Okay,” He began typing in his phone, quickly hearing a notification sound from her phone. “There you go.”

She couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re a strange guy, Claude. You know that?”

“Oh I’m aware. ‘The machinations of my mind are an enigma’, to quote a wise man.”

“I don’t think Patrick Star counts as a wise man, but whatever,” She stood up from the steps, stretching her arms. “I got another class starting soon. I’ll get Lorenz to behave, so maybe we can try lunch again tomorrow?”

Claude stood up as well. “Of course. I’ll see you then.” They waved good-bye as Katrina walked off to her next class. She couldn’t help but smile, this guy was something else, indulging in her fantasies when no one else had. She took her phone out to add him to her contacts, rolling her eyes at his first text being “hi lol”. She hadn’t expected anything else.


	4. Chapter 4

Lunch went much better the next day. Lorenz apologized to him again for his actions, even though Claude could tell that he didn’t want him there. Hilda had forced him to apologize a second time, and to Katrina as well, he’d learn later that Hilda had Lorenz wrapped around her finger. Which didn’t come as a surprise, seeing as their relationship had been the same back in Fodlan. Marianne was still acting shy, but she made attempts at starting conversations with him, even if it was just small talk. He wouldn’t pressure her, he knew it’d take some time for her to open up. The lunch was enjoyable though, he saw how the four of them had bonded with each other in this world and how natural it was. In a way, it made him a bit jealous. He wondered what it would’ve been like had he been part of their group from the beginning. But it didn’t matter all that much, he was there now and that was what mattered.

His class with Katrina met up again the day after, and she told him about a detail she’d neglected to before.

“I think the deja vu and my dreams have some sort of connection.” she said as she took her seat next to him.

Well, this continued to get interesting. “I’m listening.” he said.

“Okay, so whenever I meet someone who feels familiar in some way, the dreams change slightly,” she began. “For example, when I first met Lorenz as a kid, it felt like someone in that world became...a bit more clear, for lack of a better word.”

“More clear?”

“Yeah, I mean, I still don’t have the perfect picture, but they feel more real in a sense. Or at least as much as someone in a dream can feel? Anyway, when I met Lorenz, there was this guy in the dreams that began to stand out a bit more. I thought it was a one-off thing, but then it happened again with Hilda. And it happened again with Balthus-”

“Balthus?” Claude asked. He still had that promise he’d made with Yuri about trying to find him, and while he figured it made sense Katrina would know him in this world he had to get more details.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you about him. Balthus is a friend of Hilda’s older brother, though I ran into him before I knew that. He helped me out when we first met, and he’s been like a brother to me ever since. He’s crashing at Hilda’s parents place right now, he got into some trouble with money or something, but he’s a good guy. I’ll have to make sure you meet him some day, he’s a fun guy to be around.”

Of course he was still like an older brother to her here. Part of him hoped that he was the only brother in her life, but there wasn’t much reason to pry into that part right now. “I’ll check my schedule. Anyway, you were saying about the dreams?”

“Oh, right! Got off track there! But the point is, it’s happened every time I’ve met someone I feel like I’ve met before, so I figure they’re connected somehow.”

Curiosity overcame him, he couldn’t help but ask. “So what about me? Did you have a special dream after we met the other day?”

“Well, that’s why I’m telling you this. It’s strange, the whole thing feels so vivid, most of my dreams don’t feel as clear.”

“What was it about?”

“Alright, bear with me, I’ll try to explain it as best as I can,” He got as comfortable as he could in his seat, as she explained her dream and the memories came flooding back to him. “So I’m from some sort of noble family in these dreams, it’s complicated so I won’t explain the details. But an heir to the most powerful noble in the region is found, and my family jumps to get me engaged to him. I have no say in the matter, but we travel to their territory to finalize the details and so I can meet him. I don’t want to be there, and I make it very clear, but I’m told to just go find the library since I’m not cooperating. So I find my way there, and start reading. After some time, I hear someone talking to me, and it’s him. My future husband. I don’t want anything to do with the marriage, so I want nothing to do with him, and I tell him so. I guess I hoped that if I acted rude he wouldn’t want to marry me? I don’t know. But instead he takes pity on me, talks about how he knows I don’t want to be there but still wants to help me. He’s nothing like I expected him to be, but I’m too stubborn to back down. So I keep being rude, hoping he’ll take the hint and go away. Eventually he leaves, saying something about how he’s not going to let this marriage be miserable for me before he goes. And then I woke up.”

Claude knows exactly what she’d dreamt about. That was their first meeting in their past life. It was true, revealing himself as Duke Riegan’s heir lead to multiple people wanting to marry him. Katrina’s family, House Richter, had been a small noble family in the Alliance without much influence. It was clear that they were setting this up for power more than anything, even at the expense of her happiness. When they’d arrived at House Riegan’s territory, he could see that she didn’t want any part in it. He’d decided to meet her face to face, and she chewed him out over the whole thing. He’d realized that she was a girl who deserved to live her own life, not have things chosen for her. But he knew if he didn’t agree to this, they’d just try sticking her with some other noble who’d no doubt make her miserable. It hadn’t been in his plans to get engaged, but he went with it. He’d figure things out later. They managed to get closer to each other, becoming friends and both of them developing feelings towards each other, and the rest was history. He’d always wished they’d met under better circumstances, which they did in this world at least, though he couldn’t deny that the fact that she’d dreamed about that first meeting made him happy for multiple reasons.

“Wow, that’s quite the tale you got there.”

“Yeah, I scrambled to write it down when I woke up. I can’t remember his face though, but that always happens. But he’s been in my dreams before, I think.”

The professor walked in, cutting their conversation short. “We’ll have to revisit this later.” Claude whispered, getting a nod in response.

After class though, a text arrived from an unknown number. He was confused at first, but upon reading it he knew who it was from and put them in his contacts quickly. It seemed that he had plans that evening.

‘Claude, it’s time we finally had that talk. Meet me at the art building after classes are done, I’ll be there until it gets dark. - Ignatz’

\----------------------------------------------

Just as the text said, Ignatz was waiting for him outside the art building. He’d almost forgotten he’d given him his number with everything he’d learned the past few days. But there was no putting this off. They had to talk, just as him and Yuri had eight years ago. As he approached him, Ignatz made it very clear why he’d called him here.

“You remember don’t you? About Fodlan and everyone we know?”

Claude nodded his head. “And so do you.”

“Yes. I’ve been meaning to talk to you but my classes have kept me busy. I need you to follow me, we can talk on the way there.” Ignatz made his way into the building, Claude following behind him. The art building was pretty empty, it seemed most of the students had already left for the weekend. That made it easier to talk about things.

“So, I’m guessing you’ve remembered since you were a kid?” Claude asked, getting a nod from Ignatz in response.

“Yes. I’ve had these memories my whole life. I thought I was the only one, but I guess you do too.”

“It’s not just us, I met Yuri years ago and he remembers too. He was my proof that I wasn’t just making things up,” They went up a few flights of stairs. “He’d found Hapi and Constance, but they don’t remember either. Well, Constance has dreams apparently, but she thinks they’re just that.”

“Figures that Yuri would remember. Do you have his contact info? I’d like to speak with him as well.”

“Yeah, I’ll give it to you when we’re done and let him know later so he’s not surprised.”

“Is he the only one you’ve met before recently?” Ignatz stopped in front of a door, opening it to an empty art classroom. Easels were still set up with used canvases on them.

“Yeah. Never met anyone else until a few days ago,” They stopped in front of an unfinished painting, clearly Ignatz’s from the looks of it. It was obvious what he was painting, it was Garreg Mach Monastery exactly the way he’d remembered it. “It looks just like it.”

The artist smiled, a bit proud of his work. “Thank you. Art is how I’ve kept the memories real in my mind. For as long as I could, I’ve done my best to draw or paint or sketch what I could remember. Obviously, my parents didn’t care for it, but I kept doing it anyway. The memories were just too clear in my mind.”

Of course Ignatz would still have that artistic vision. From the sound of it, he was pursuing it in this life from the beginning. It’s what he deserved. “What about you? Was anyone else from back then part of your life before coming here?”

“Yes, actually. Raphael and I have been friends since we were kids. Funny how it’s the same as before, huh?” Claude didn’t say anything, he figured he’d keep the similarities concept of Yuri’s to himself for now. “He was actually my way of realizing Fodlan was real, or at least real in the past. But he didn’t remember. I tried showing him my art and it didn’t have any kind of effect. But I didn’t mind. Just having my friend back was enough for me. We met Leonie in middle school. She didn’t remember either. I honestly began to think that I was the only one who did remember, until we crashed into each other.”

“Sorry about that,” Claude chuckled nervously. “So it’s only them? You haven’t seen anyone else?”

Ignatz shook his head. “No. I’ve seen a few people on the campus though, and some are even in my classes. But otherwise it’s just those two.”

“Huh. I’ve found the rest of the Deer, except Lysithea. Wonder where she is.”

“Well, she was always younger than us, even if only by a couple years. My guess is that she’s still in high school somewhere, living the life of a normal teenager.” He was probably right. Lysithea had no experiments conducted on her in this life, even the worst case scenario where she still had a limited time in this life was a better alternative than what she’d been put through before. It was better for her.

“You’re probably right. Besides, if we’re meant to find her, we will when the time comes.”

“Say Claude, you said Constance has dreams about Fodlan? What do you mean by that?”

Huh, not the question he’d expected. “I’m not sure. Yuri knows them better than I would. But she’s not the only one who does. Turns out Katrina has them too.”

He wasn’t sure what kind of reaction he’d expected from Ignatz. Surprise, happiness, confusion, those were likely possibilities. But instead he sighed, crossing his arms and frowning at him almost like a worried mother. “Claude, don’t get your hopes up. I know you probably have some scheme cooked up, but we don’t know what these dreams mean.”

Wow, was he that easy to figure out? “Hey, I haven’t thought of any schemes...yet. But it is possible that they could remember. I’m gonna help Katrina figure them out, seeing if she can remember is farther down the line.”

“But what if she can’t remember? What if those dreams don’t lead to anything? We have no basis that they’ll cause them to remember eventually.”

“I know that. But I figure if there’s a chance it’s worth it to try. Wouldn’t you do the same if Marianne had dreams?” He regretted saying that the moment it slipped out. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring that up.”

But Ignatz didn’t say anything. Instead he took out a sketchbook, flipping to a page before setting it down on a table. It was a drawing of Marianne, smiling as she prayed to the goddess. She looked at peace, as if nothing could take away the serenity. Thin lines indicating light shone down on her. Nothing needed to be said, it was clear she’d been on his mind for a long time.

“I just want her to be happy,” he finally said, looking down with a sad smile. “She’d been through too much in Fodlan, had too many burdens and worries. Even after the war, she was never truly at peace,” He picked up the sketchbook, his fingers lightly stroking the drawing. “Perhaps if I were in your shoes, I would want her to remember a little. But to make her remember all that pain and sadness? I could never do that. I’ve seen her with you and the others, the smile she makes feels so genuine, Claude. It took me five years to get that kind of smile out of her before,” He closed the sketchbook, holding it close to his chest. “If it were possible for her to have only the good memories, then yes, I’d try. But she has so many painful ones too. Would you want that kind of experience to befall Katrina?”

That was...a perspective Claude hadn’t considered. Of course, he knew that Marianne and Katrina had been through different experiences, but she’d also been through pain in Fodlan. Pain that he had wanted to take away forever. And getting her to remember her past life meant having her remember all those things. But perhaps having someone there who could help her through it would do her some good. He had to know. He wasn’t going to hurt Katrina, he’d stop if anything happened, but he still had to try.

“I get that. But I still think it’s worth trying. I mean, if she never remembers I can live with that, but I can’t live with not seeing if it’s possible.”

Ignatz smiled softly. “I see. Well, I guess I can’t stop you then,” He took the sketchbook and put it back in his bag. “I suppose you do know Katrina best. Just keep what I said in mind though.”

“I will, don’t worry. You know I’d never hurt her like that,” An idea struck him. “You know, you should at least try talking to her. Marianne, I mean.”

Ignatz’s cheeks flushed red. “Claude! I can’t just go up to her like that! I don’t want to scare her away!”

He couldn’t help but laugh. Same old Ignatz. “Well you have to do it someday, or else you’ll lose her. I can’t be the only one successful in love over here!”

Ignatz stammered, with no idea how to respond. He ran out of the room without warning. Guess he teased him too much.

“Ignatz! I haven’t given you Yuri’s info!” he tried calling out, but Ignatz was long gone. Oh well, he’d just text him he supposed. He took his phone out and typed in the contact info in a text, figuring that he’d get it when he calmed down. Just as he was about to put his phone away, a new text came in, one from none other than Katrina. Well then, he had plans for tomorrow afternoon.

\--------------------------------------

Katrina felt weird being on campus on a Saturday. Her family lived in the city the university was located, so she thought it’d be easier for her to live at home and take a bus to get to the campus. But here she was, in the dorms, history materials in hand, and a bit nervous. She looked at the room number, double checking to make sure she had the right one. She took a deep breath. “It’s alright Katrina, you’re just here to go over the notes, that’s it, it’ll be fine.” she whispered to herself. Steeling herself, she knocked on the door.

It opened a minute later. Claude stood there looking composed as always. “There you are! I was worried you weren’t going to make it!” he said. His casual attitude managed to lift the anxiety she felt slightly. He must’ve done it on purpose.

She rolled her eyes. “I’m not even late. You just gonna stand there or do I get to come in anytime soon?” He moved out of her way, letting her walk into the dorm. She was a bit surprised to see it so organized when she’d walked in, for some reason she thought it’d be a mess. Not that she would admit that. At least she didn’t have to worry about that if she came over again. There was one thing she had to ask though. “Where’s your roommate? Is he gonna bother us at all?”

Claude had closed the door behind her. “He’s not here. He’s spending some time downtown to explore the place, probably won’t be back until the evening if I had to guess,” he explained. “But he won’t be an issue if he does come back. He’s a pretty nice guy, he won’t get in the way.”

Oddly enough, he’d managed to be roommates with Ashe of all people. Not that he minded, Ashe was a pleasant person to be around, he didn’t even bother Claude unless dinner was ready or there was an emergency.

“He won’t care that you’ve got a girl here?” Katrina smirked.

“Nah, he’ll just go to his room and leave us be,” He walked over to the table, having placed his history notes there already. “So you’re having trouble with the notes?”

Katrina looked away at the couch. “Yeah, I’m not that good when it comes to note taking, and I never can figure out what parts of the lecture I should write down or not. So I hoped we could go over our notes and stuff.”

“That’s fine. Wouldn’t want you to fail the class after all,” Suddenly, Claude found himself struck with an idea. “Hey, you seem a bit tense. You want me to make some tea? It’s great for dealing with nerves.”

She finally looked at him, as he walked over to the cabinet. “Oh, um, I’m not really a tea person. It all just tastes like weird bitter water to me.”

He’d expected that answer. Tea hadn’t exactly been her preferred drink in their past life either, she’d always had a sweet tooth that could rival Lysithea. But he’d prepared for this. “Well, I have a tea perfect for someone who isn’t a tea person,” He rummaged through the tea boxes in the cabinet, finally finding the one he was looking for. She might not have been a tea person, but there was always one kind of tea she never turned down, one he made sure to always have supplied when they had tea time. Sweet Apple Blend. He was surprised to find it in this world, obviously some of Fodlans teas didn’t exist here such as his own favorite Almyran Pine Needles, but it pleased him either way. Plus there was always chamomile tea, which he grabbed a bag for himself. He turned to face her, showing off the unopened box. “Tada! Sweet Apple Blend! I have a feeling that you’ll like this one.”

“I didn’t know they made apple tea. Then again, I never paid much attention to tea flavors so that’s on me. Alright, I’ll give it a try.” She did like apples, so perhaps this would go better than any other tea she’d tried before.

“Then give me a second and I’ll have it ready for you,” He walked over to the Keurig, turning it on and waiting for the water to heat up. He would’ve done it the old fashioned way, but they didn’t have a kettle and this was more convenient. He grabbed two mugs while he waited, he would’ve preferred to have proper tea cups but he and Ashe were just college students, so mugs it was. The more authentic experience would have to wait for another day. He placed the tea bags into the mugs, filling them up with hot water. “Want some cookies to go with the tea? I brought some with me when I settled in.”

Katrina had sat down at the table, her materials placed to the side. “Oh, sure!”

He grabbed a small plate and found the package of cookies. They were just store-bought molasses cookies, but they’d do. He put the plate of cookies in the center of the table, then came back with the mugs. “It might need another minute to steep. Plus it’s still hot.”

Katrina waited a moment, taking in the scent of the tea before she drank it. It did smell like apples, or as much as a tea could smell like apples. She enjoyed the scent, perhaps this was the kind of tea she’d enjoy. After figuring it had been enough, she took a sip of the tea.

Once she did however, it felt like she found herself somewhere else entirely.

She wasn’t sitting in a dorm room kitchen anymore, but outside in some kind of garden. The mug she’d held in her hand was now a proper tea cup, with fresh tea leaves in it. The table had a variety of small cookies she could pick from, not just the ones that had been sitting there before. The taste of the Sweet Apple Blend lingered in her mouth. It was delicious, the best tea she’d ever had. She couldn’t pick out most of the details around her, it felt as if her vision were blurry, out of focus. But she could tell one thing. She wasn’t alone. Sitting across from her was another person. Someone she knew, someone she was happy to be spending time with. But she couldn’t make them out. He tried to speak to her, but his voice was muffled and sounded far away. She felt like if she stayed here, the picture would become clear, maybe if she drank more tea…

“Katrina? Katrina, are you okay?”

As soon as it had come, the garden was gone. She was back in Claude’s dorm, holding a mug and sitting at a kitchen table with a plate of molasses cookies. Claude was across from her, a worried frown on his face and a hand on her shoulder. Whatever she’d seen, it was gone now. Was it some kind of daydream? But what had caused it?

“Yeah, I’m good.” She took another sip of the tea, hoping it would take her back to the garden but it didn’t. It did feel warm and comforting though. It was like she’d been missing out on something until now.

Claude let out a sigh of relief, his usual smile back where it usually was. “That’s good, you just zoned out and started staring off into space. I tried to talk to you, but it’s like you didn’t hear me. Was the tea bad?”

“No, no, not at all. I love it actually! I can’t believe you were right about it,” She set her mug down. “I think I just had a weird daydream or something?”

His eyebrow quirked upward. “What kind of daydream?”

And so she told him. About the garden and the tea and the person sitting across from her. How it all felt familiar, like she’d been there before and knew the person sitting with her. Claude had to keep his mouth from hanging open as he listened. He knew what she saw, it had to be a memory of them having tea together back in Garreg Mach. They’d met up for it all the time, sometimes drinking in silence while other times having lively conversations. He’d thought giving her that tea would do something, but nothing quite like that. Maybe...that meant other things would help her. Now he had to know more.

“I’m sorry, it must sound weird. I’ve just never had this happen while I’m wide awake.” she said.

“No, it’s fine. I like hearing about those dreams, remember? But for now, why don’t we focus on these history notes?”

She’d completely forgotten about them, the daydream had distracted her. “Yeah, you’re right, let’s get the history out of the way.”

So the two of them went over each other's notes, helping her sort her own out in the process. But Claude could barely think about them, he’d managed to make a breakthrough! He doubted something like this would happen again, but this had to be a sign that she could remember. He just knew it. He had to let Yuri know. Tonight.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops, sorry about the lack of upload yesterday, I got sidetracked and sorta forgot to upload the chapter... Sorry! I also didn't go through this and edit it at all, so I might do so later when I have the chance. I just wanna get this out.
> 
> Anyway, this might be the last update for a while. Working on my other fic has left me feeling drained and I've struggled with writing it for a bit. Now I do have the next chapter of this fic nearly finished, so hopefully I can get that out soon, but if it takes a while for the next update then that's why. Basically, frequent updates are ending now and this will update when I get a chapter done.

“So Claude, what’s this urgent news you had to tell me?” Yuri asked, the sound of typing coming through his speakers.

“Well, there’s a lot to unpack so you might want to pay attention. My week has been quite the eventful one, after all.” Claude said, sitting at the desk in his room. He had to wait until Katrina left, feeling like she understood the notes better and taking some of that tea with her, and then he had to wait until it was a bit later in the evening before he could message Yuri. The leader of the Ashen Wolves lived on the other side of the country now, and was three hours behind. So getting in touch with him meant having to wait until night.

“I’m paying attention. But I do need to get this work done. I may only be going to a community college, but the work is just as demanding.”

“Alright, first off, I found a lot of our old friends,” He figured he should start with the obvious. It was the lead-up to everything else after all. “Just about all of the Golden Deer are here, and I’ve seen some of the Blue Lions wandering around.”

“Good to hear. I can only assume you’ve finally found Katrina then?”

“Of course. And while I haven’t met him in person yet, I did find Balthus as well.”

The typing stopped. “Excuse me for a moment, I need some water,” He heard Yuri stand up and leave the room. Perhaps he should’ve saved that information for last, but he had to tell him. Yuri and Balthus had always been close, and it was clear that he’d been looking for him just as much as Claude had been searching for Katrina. He wouldn’t show it in front of anyone, but it was likely that hearing how Balthus was so close had an emotional effect on him. He waited it out, busying himself with browsing the internet until he heard Yuri return. “Alright. Are you certain it’s him? It isn’t someone with the same name?”

“Well, he’s friends with Hilda’s older brother, is an older brother figure to Katrina, is dealing with money troubles, I’m pretty sure it’s him.”

He could hear a faint sigh from the other end. “Yes, I suppose those would all be some very convenient coincidences if it weren’t him. I’ll have to come by and visit you then so I can finally reunite with him. I’m assuming you have more news for me though?”

“Of course I do. I found someone else who remembers.”

The typing had resumed, but it slowed down for a moment. “Really? That’s a surprise in itself. Who is it?”

“Ignatz. I told him about you already and gave him your contact info, so he’ll get a hold of you at some point if he hasn’t already.”

“Ignatz, huh? I suppose that’s not a surprise. I haven’t heard from him yet, but I’ll keep an eye out. The three of us should come together at some point and pool all our information together. It’d be best to keep everyone in the loop.”

“I agree. We should stick together when it comes to this,” Claude thought for a moment, the events of the afternoon replaying back in his head. It was the reason he’d called in the first place, and he’d have to tell him eventually. “There’s one other thing I have to tell you, but I need to ask you a question first.”

“Shoot.”

“Has Constance ever spaced out and daydreamed? Like, daydreamed about Fodlan specifically?”

The typing stopped once again, as Yuri hummed in thought. “If she has, I either haven’t been there when it happened or I never noticed it. Why?”

And so he explained everything. About how Katrina had dreams too, how she recognized people from their past life vaguely, how meeting someone she knew caused the dreams to get stronger, and the tea incident from earlier that day. Yuri sat quietly throughout the explanation, waiting for him to finish. Claude even explained the daydream with all the details Katrina had given him. When he finished, Yuri sighed, though it sounded more exasperated than the previous one.

“Claude, I understand that you want her to remember. But we don’t know how those who have dreams will react to old stimuli. Giving her that tea was a risky idea.”

“Woah, you misunderstand. I didn’t give her the tea to make her remember, I was just trying to help her relax. She was tense because of her history notes. So I made her some tea I knew she liked. I mean, I do want to see if she can remember, but that wasn’t on purpose.”

“Alright, I’ll take your word for it. Either way, that’s definitely an interesting reaction. I mean, I certainly wouldn’t have expected tea to have awakened something in her like that. It hasn’t happened with Constance as far as I know.”

“Constance likes tea though, Katrina never cared for it aside from the Sweet Apple Blend and the cinnamon tea. So if she did have that kind of reaction, it’d have been long before you met. At least that’s my theory.”

Yuri had stopped typing again, caught up in the conversation. “I suppose you have a point there. It’s not like we have any basis we can work off of, so those two are our only way to figure things out. Still, Constance hasn’t had anything like that happen to her. And she tells me everything about her dreams, so I think I’d have something to go off on.”

He didn’t really like talking about them like they were guinea pigs, but this was something they had to discuss in case it ever happened again. “Well, maybe try asking if she’s had any. It won’t hurt to do so.”

“I’m still not happy with this, you know. Whether they should remember or not aside, there could be dangerous results to giving them old stimuli. They could remember something traumatic, it’s lucky Katrina only remembered having tea time. If you do intend to keep getting her to remember, you have to be careful. It’s possible that you could overwhelm her after all.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. I wasn’t going to try anything crazy anyway,” The way this conversation was going reminded him of his discussion with Ignatz yesterday. “Besides, the last thing I want to do is hurt her, you know that.”

“Listen Claude, I have to tell you something important. You’ve never met anyone from our former life, so there’s something you need to know going into this,” Yuri sounded serious. “The ones who don’t remember, dreams or not, they may be our friends and loved ones reborn, but they’re not the people we used to know.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean, they all have lived different lives, and even though those lives can have similarities they’re not the same. The lives they’ve lived have made them different people, Claude. I understand how important it is to have Katrina again, and that it’s possible she could remember the life she once lived, but right now she’s not Katrina von Richter. And it’s possible she’ll never be Katrina von Richter. That’s something you need to come to terms with. Can you live with the possibility that this Katrina will never be the Katrina you remember?”

Claude hadn’t even thought of that idea. Sure, he figured he could live with her never remembering, that was fine. But even without the memories it was still Katrina, right? She behaved the same way, her personality was the same, how could it not be her? He wasn’t about to let this trip him up, not while Yuri could hear him at least. “I already know she’s not gonna be the exact same person,” he said, hiding the anger beginning to boil. “It doesn’t matter, I love Katrina and I want to be by her side again.”

“I’m just saying. Hapi and Constance aren’t who they once were, and I’m certain that I’ll never have the exact Balthus I used to know either. I merely warn you about this because I don’t want you chasing a ghost. Don’t be consumed by a desire to retrieve the past. I have to go, this paper isn’t writing itself. Just take my advice to heart, old friend. I’ll talk later.” Without warning, Yuri hung up the call before Claude could say anything else.

Claude slammed his laptop shut. “‘She’s not Katrina von Richter’, like I didn’t know that already!” He fell down onto his bed, groaning into the pillowcase. What a stupid thing to warn him about, of course she wasn’t the same person, but she was still Katrina! She was still in there, he just knew it, and Yuri had no place to act like he knew her. He turned around, looking up at the ceiling.

He knew Yuri had a point, he just didn’t want to admit that. Not when there was a chance he could be proven wrong. But a part of him couldn’t help but think over what he said. He’d been making assumptions, of course he knew Katrina like the back of his own hand but that was the Katrina of Fodlan. He’d only known this Katrina for a few days. He wasn’t going to throw her into a relationship or anything just because of his feelings that had lasted across lifetimes, but he did need to learn about this version of her. He couldn’t keep assuming he knew everything about her.

A soft knock at his door snapped him out of his thoughts. He sat up, taking a deep breath. “Yeah?”

Ashe opened the door, a concerned frown voicing his intentions before he had the chance to say them. “Is everything alright? I heard some noises from the kitchen and got worried.”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” he lied. Ashe didn’t need to know about what was going on. “Just got a bit frustrated at this assignment is all.”

Ashe’s features softened. “Alright then. Dinner should be ready in a few more minutes. I’ll let you know when. Good luck with your assignment!” He closed the door, returning to the kitchen.

Claude looked back at the closed laptop before taking out his phone. He had to at least see where Yuri was coming from. And maybe he’d prove him wrong. He was going to learn about Katrina all over again. He already had a good amount of information in his mind, it wouldn’t be hard to figure her out again.

\-----------------------------------------

“You know, sometimes I just can’t figure him out.”

Hilda and Marianne looked over at Katrina, pausing the game they were playing. The three of them were at Hilda’s house for the evening, as even though she had a dorm room her brother insisted that she visit on weekends so he knew she was okay. He was a protective older brother, always had been for as long as she’d known Hilda. “You mean Claude, right?” Hilda asked.

“Yeah, who else would I be talking about?” Katrina asked.

“Lorenz.”

“Yes, you could mean Lorenz.” Marianne agreed.

“Okay, you’re right, but I don’t mean Lorenz this time,” Katrina said. “I mean, Claude felt familiar to me when we met, and my impression of him seems spot on, but I don’t understand him completely.”

“You’ve only known him for a few days though. Even with that power of yours, you’re not gonna know their life story or anything.” Hilda said, turning back to the game. Marianne went back with her.

“Still though, the things he does are a bit confusing.”

“You’re talking about the tea thing, right?”

“Yeah,” That experience still confused her, the daydream felt so real even though it was gone in an instant. She hadn’t brought up that part with them yet though, even though Hilda was more accepting of her dreams than Lorenz she still worried the whole thing might get her worried. “I mean, I don’t drink tea, how’d he know I’d like that kind if I’ve never had it before?”

“Lucky guess? Coincidences can happen you know,” Hilda lost her last life, leaving Marianne as the winner of the match. She handed the controller over to Katrina. “Although, I have a possible idea if you’re willing to consider it!”

“Not this again…” Katrina muttered, picking her main fighter.

“Don’t give me that! I swear, he’s the guy that was looking at you so much when we were exploring the campus! I bet you it’s a case of love at first sight!”

“I highly doubt that’s the case here,” The match started, and she fought Marianne’s character as she talked, not looking away from the screen. “As nice as love at first sight is, it’s not something that happens in real life. Besides, why would he fall for me so quickly?”

“Caspar did. Which if you’ll remember, was your last and only boyfriend and you haven’t even tried to get with someone else!”

“Hey, you know why I broke up with Caspar,” She paused the game, looking directly as Hilda. “I still feel bad for not telling him the truth.”

“I know. But this isn’t Caspar, this is another guy. A guy who does have an interest in you, I’m not making that up. He was getting ready to go help you after Lorenz argued with you before the rest of us even brought it up. You don’t just do that for a person you just met a few hours before.”

“Hilda, please, I understand you wanna help, but I can work through my love life on my own. Besides, I barely know him, I’m not gonna jump into a relationship with a guy I just met.”

“I’m not hearing you say you’re not interested though.”

She froze. Hilda wasn’t wrong, she did feel something for him. But it was only because of the impression she had of him, and she didn’t want to scare him off by admitting something so crazy sounding. And the feelings she had were only a spark, it wasn’t as if it were a full blown crush or anything. They could easily disappear. She did like Claude, quite a bit, but she wanted to focus on a friendship right now, maybe in time they could be a couple. But she wouldn’t let Hilda know all that.

“Look, Katrina, what happened with Caspar is in the past, there’s no way it’ll happen again. You can’t let that incident hover over your head and keep you from getting with someone else,” Hilda said, looking at her with a stern face. “This guy likes you, he’s handsome, and I bet he’d treat you like his queen. You can't let something like that just slip away because you’re scared! Give him a chance, you’ll regret it if you don’t.”

She sighed. “You know, you’re never this pushy with Marianne’s love life.”

“Oh no, she is,” The third member of the room spoke up. “She thinks there’s this guy who’s too shy to talk to me and wants me to talk to him.”

“I don’t think, I know he is! He looks at you like a goddess, Marianne! And if he’s not gonna speak up then you should! Break the ice!” Hilda insisted.

Marianne looked down at the floor. “I don’t know…”

“Hilda, let her go at her own pace,” Katrina said. “Not everyone can be like you and Lorenz after all.”

Hilda chuckled to herself. “Don’t forget I had to make the first move on him. He would’ve never done anything if I hadn’t asked him out first!”

“Anyway, it’s too early for me to get into a relationship with him. It’s been three days, Hilda,” Katrina said, unpausing the game. Her and Marianne returned to fighting with each other. “Even if he does feel that way for me, I don’t know if I do. Let me develop a friendship with him and figure him out first. Besides, there’s another reason I don’t want to throw myself at him.”

“And what might that be?” Hilda asked.

“Hilda! Been wondering when I’d see you!” The girls turned to look at the doorway and saw Balthus standing there. “And you brought your friends with you! Hey little sis!” He waved at Katrina before making his way over to the couch to sit next to her.

She rolled her eyes, even after all these years he still insisted on calling her his little sister. She didn’t mind it, but the fact that he tended to act like he was her brother could be a bit much at times. “Good to see you too, big bro.”

“Sweet, you’re playing Smash Bros! I call next round!” He wrapped his arm around her, giving her a light noogie in the process.

“Alright, it’s loser goes out though! Keep that in mind!” Hilda said. Katrina and Marianne wrapped up their match, leaving a solid victory for Katrina. Marianne handed her controller over to Balthus, letting him pick his character.

“So what were you talking about earlier? Sounded like it was pretty serious.” he asked, as the round started.

Katrina tried to dismiss it, but Hilda spoke up. “We were talking about how Katrina should just get with her new friend back at the campus, because he’s totally into her!”

“Hilda! No!” Katrina muttered through clenched teeth, but the damage was already done.

“What? You’re getting a boyfriend?!” Balthus exclaimed, his shock allowing Katrina to knock out his character. If he was annoyed by it, he didn’t say anything.

“No! He’s a friend, who happens to be a boy, but he’s not my boyfriend!” she insisted.

“Who also clearly likes you, even though you keep denying it.” Hilda added, getting a glare from Katrina in response.

“Well if he thinks he can date you, he’ll have to go through me first!” Balthus said. “I’m not gonna let just anyone date my little sis, you know! They gotta prove themselves to me, the King of Grappling!”

“We’re not dating, we’ve known each other for three days!” She didn’t bother to bring up the daydream, she’d never found a way to tell Balthus about her strange abilities so he never knew about her dreams. “We’re just friends!”

“For now! He could try to make a move on you! I’m not gonna let some creep date you!” He managed to recover quickly from his early slip-up, and now was in the lead. He was kicking her ass at the game.

“You don’t need to fight him though! You messed up my first boyfriend pretty bad, you know! I don’t even think Claude knows how to wrestle!”

“That guy was fine, he liked wrestling with me! Pretty sure he wanted to do it again! But we don’t have to wrestle, I can just play him in this! I’m pretty good after all!” And just like that, he won the match with two lives to spare. “Alright, who’s next?”

Katrina handed the controller to Hilda, hearing her phone go off and tell her she had a text. She wasn’t surprised to see it was from Claude, but she was surprised at what it said. “Huh, turns out he’s got a friend who wants to meet you.”

Balthus looked equally as puzzled. “Meet me? I mean, if it means I get to see this guy then I’ll see his friend. Any idea why he wants to meet me?”

She shook her head. “Didn’t say. Claude’s a mysterious guy, but he has his reasons for doing things. I’ll let him know.”

The four of them continued to play for a while longer, each of them getting decimated by Balthus. The chime of an old clock interrupted their fun, showing it was rather late. “We should head back. I don’t want to be late for church in the morning.” Marianne said.

Marianne was a fairly religious person, not because of her upbringing but simply of her own volition. At least that’s what Katrina had gathered, her parents had never seemed as religious at least. Though they were an interesting pair on their own, especially her dad. He loved his wife and daughter greatly, but he wasn’t someone you crossed swords with. He was intimidating at times.

Hilda sighed as she looked at the clock. “Is it really that late already? I guess we should head back to the dorms, sorry Baltie,” She looked over at Katrina as she stood up. “How about you? Need me to drive you home?”

“No, I’m going the other way, remember?” she answered, getting up and stretching her arms. “I can figure out a way back myself.”

“If you don’t have a ride, then I’ll take you home,” Balthus insisted. “I haven’t been drinking, I’m fine!”

“Alright, no point trying to tell you otherwise. I’ll see you guys on Monday!” She knew trying to convince Balthus she didn’t need a ride wouldn’t work, he’d already made up his mind. So with that, the friends split ways for the night.

\-------------------------------------------------

Katrina sat down in the library, reading a book she’d found herself engrossed with. She simply couldn’t put it down, she’d have to check it out later.

“I thought I’d find you here,” A voice spoke up beside her. She turned her head, seeing her fiance standing there with a smirk on his face. He’d snuck up on her again without her noticing, how’d he even get in the library when her seat faced the entrance? She was nearly tempted to throw the book she was reading at him, but held back the urge. “Mind if I sit here?”

“Go right ahead,” she said, watching as he took the seat next to her. “I’ve told you to stop startling me like that! You’re lucky I’m reading a book and not training right now.”

He laughed, it sounded like music to her ears. He knew she wasn’t mad at him. He placed his hand on top of her own, not holding it but letting it sit there. It felt warm, she didn’t want it to leave. “Sorry, I just can’t help myself sometimes. You looked so peaceful reading that book that I almost didn’t want to disturb you. Almost.”

She looked at his face, the beautiful face she’d fallen in love with. She hated that the only reason he spent time with her was because of their engagement. She knew things weren’t like the stories she loved, even if they got along that didn’t mean they’d be a happy couple. Political marriages such as theirs rarely had such happy endings. But she wanted to dream, to hope, that maybe he’d love her back. But she didn’t expect him to, it was ridiculous to think he would.

“You okay there? You’re spacing out again.” he said, and she realized his hand had moved to a book he’d grabbed.

“Yeah, sorry, just lost in my thoughts again.” she laughed nervously.

“I’d like to hear some of those thoughts sometime,” he said, looking at the pages of his book. “The ones you get lost in must be fascinating.”

“Hardly,” she scoffed. “They’re not all that interesting.”

“Maybe to you they aren’t, but they might be to me.”

“Just read your own book already.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Alright, so much for that conversation. I’ll be quiet now, you go back to your scandalous tome of true love.”

“Shut up.” She tried to read, but she couldn’t help but be distracted by his presence. Maybe someday she could tell him how she felt, but like most days it wouldn’t be today. She pretended to read, hoping he wouldn’t notice how distracted she was.

…

Katrina woke up in her bedroom. It was another dream. Once again, the details were hazy. She looked over at her clock, it was nearly four in the morning. If she wanted to remember this, she had to write it down now.

She switched her lamp on and grabbed a notebook from her nightstand, scribbling down what little she could remember of her dream. The fiance had shown up again, he had been for the past few nights. Why her dreams focused on him now, she didn’t know. But it wouldn’t be the first time it happened. Once before she had dreams focused on one person, but they didn’t end well. She prayed that this time things wouldn’t end so tragically.

She finished writing, placing the notebook back where she’d left it and turned off the lights again. She switched her music on and drifted back into sleep, her heart beating a bit faster in her chest as she thought of the mysterious man of her dreams.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is sort of filler for the most part, but I wanted to put in some small stuff as well so that's what you got. The plot here is a bit loose so there's gonna be chapters like these at points.
> 
> Also, it may take a while for the next chapter of this fic to come out. I struggled to get this one done for a while, and also my creative focus is directed more at my other project right now, so don't be surprised if this fic goes quiet for a while. I will come back to it though, don't worry about that! I just think it might be better for me to focus on one fic at a time. I wanted to get this chapter done though before I did, so that way I didn't have a WIP sitting around for forever. Either way, hope to see you all when I put up the next chapter, whenever that ends up being!

Claude and Katrina walked along the campus grounds, the trees around them turning shades of red and orange and yellow. As the weeks passed, autumn had caught up with them. The air was getting colder, but their bond had grown stronger. Nowhere near the level of dating or even confessing yet, but Claude didn’t mind. It’d taken them a while to do so the first time after all, he could wait until she was comfortable.

After the tea incident, he’d done his best to be more subtle. Yuri was right that attempting something like that could be risky, so it was better to go the simple route. Going back through the things he’d done before they were a couple hadn’t been so hard, he’d managed to get her to fall for him before without even trying so having the intent this time was bound to make things easier. “You need some help with the notes again, Kat? I’m always free for another study date.”

That was one of the more subtle ways. He’d started calling her by his old nickname for her, or at least the one that wasn’t deliberate flirting. He’d waited a few weeks before breaking it out, and it seemed like she took to it instantly. He wouldn’t deny that he felt a flutter in his chest when she did.

Katrina took a sip from her take-out mug, filled with hot chocolate. Even though she loved the tea, she still preferred her hot chocolate and usually went for it when things started cooling down like this. “I think so. The professor talks too fast for me sometimes, his words just blend together a lot and it makes it hard to keep track.” she sighed.

“We’ll have to take a class next semester that doesn’t involve constant lectures.” he chuckled.

“But then I’d have no excuse to come visit you.” He wondered sometimes if she was flirting with him when she said things like that. It was hard to tell sometimes and he didn’t want to make presumptions.

“Oh, I’d find another way to have you come over. Homework is never truly easy, after all.”

She shook her head, she was used to this by now, but it felt natural to her. This was just how Claude behaved, and she liked it. “Yeah, yeah, I’m sure you would, Sunflower.”

Both of them stopped. Claude wasn’t sure he’d heard her correctly. Did she just call him what he thought she did? He had to know. “Did you just call me ‘Sunflower’?”

Katrina had no idea why she did that. The name just slipped out like it was natural. She hadn’t even thought about it. “I, uh, I guess I did. I don’t know why, it just happened,” Her cheeks felt warm suddenly. “I mean, it is kinda fitting for you, I guess! You know, with all the yellow you wear! But if you don’t like it, I won’t call you that!”

“No, no, it’s fine. I like it,” Sunflower. It was a nickname she’d given him after they’d been engaged, before she’d warmed up to him. It had originally been mocking in nature, though he never learned how it was meant to be, but as they became friends and fell in love it turned into a term of endearment. It wasn’t one she’d used often, but it was one he enjoyed hearing. And it felt like so long since he’d last heard it. “Call me ‘Sunflower’ as much as you like.”

Katrina let out a breath she’d been holding. “Okay, I’ll do that then. I like calling you by your name though, so I might stick with that until I’m used to this. And I’m definitely not using it around Hilda. She's already convinced we’re dating even though we’re not, there’s no need to fuel that fire.”

“Is there something wrong with that? Maybe being a couple wouldn’t be so bad.” He said that, but he knew how much of a gossip Hilda was in both this life and the last. Granted dating Katrina was what he was aiming for, but he wasn’t about to push her.

“Well until we do start dating, if we start dating that is, I don’t want her to get any ideas.”

“I suppose that’s fair. She does like to involve herself in everyone else’s love lives.”

“Speaking of, we should get to lunch before she thinks we’re off doing something weird. Come on, um, Sunflower.”

Claude couldn’t help but smile. Yuri had once told him that old nicknames came naturally, as Hapi had quickly begun calling him “Yuri Bird” again when they met. He’d figured it was only a matter of time that this would happen, but he couldn’t help but be surprised by it. It was a nice surprise though. One he was happy to hear.

\-------------------------------------------

“Ah shit, is it that late already?!” Katrina had looked at her phone in shock, seeing the clock read 4:55. She’d been talking with Claude for so long she’d lost track of time and missed the last bus of the day. “I need to get home!” She scrambled her things into her bag, looking around the area as if doing so would cause a method home to appear.

“Can’t you ask someone to drive you there?” Claude asked. He would’ve offered to drive her there, but he didn’t have a vehicle and he didn’t know where she lived aside from off-campus. Still, he wasn’t about to sit there and not help her out with the problem. 

“Hilda and Marianne are having a girl’s night out, and they’re already out in the city so I can’t ask them. And I refuse to share a car with Lorenz, so that’s not an option.”

“Well, what about-” Before he could finish his sentence, Katrina’s phone began ringing. Both of them looked at the screen, seeing Balthus was the one calling. “Perfect, I was just about to suggest him!”

She answered the phone, trying to hide the panic inside her. “Hey bro, what’s up?”

“SIS!” Balthus’ voice rang through her ears loud enough for Claude to hear him. “Hilda told me you were probably still at the campus and would need a ride back! So I’m here to pick you up!”

“Wait, Hilda told you I was still here?”

“Yeah, something about how you were probably still talking to your boyfriend.”

“Balthus, we’re just friends!” Claude couldn’t help but snicker from where he was standing, even when Katrina gave him a look. “But yeah, she was right on the mark I guess. I’ll be there in a sec.”

“Awesome! See ya soon!” The call ended and she put her phone in her coat pocket.

“Well then, guess that problem solves itself,” she said. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Hold on, I want to meet this guy,” Claude said, grabbing his things. “I’ve been curious about this Balthus guy, he seems to care about you a lot.” He remembered quite a bit about how the two of them had bonded in Fodlan. They both happened to share a very rare crest, the Crest of Chevalier, and Balthus had decided that was a good enough reason to become her older brother figure. They way they’d behaved, it’d be hard to assume they weren’t related by blood. They’d managed to have a true sibling bond, it made him happy. He still didn’t know how the two were in this world though, and he’d intended to meet him anyway.

“Uhhhhh, I’m not sure about that,” She looked away. “Balthus is convinced that we’re a couple and he’s already said he wants to fight you. And uh, he’s strong. He learned wrestling and still practices it, and I’d rather not have him beat you up.”

“Don’t worry about it, Kat,” He placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a relaxed smile. “I can handle him. I have a way with words.”

“I don’t like this, but I also know I can’t stop you. Let’s just get it over with.” With Katrina letting out a sigh, the two of them made their way over to where Balthus was parked. She hoped that this wouldn’t end in a disaster.

Sure enough, Balthus was waiting outside of his car. Upon spotting Katrina, he walked up to her and gave her a big hug. “Come here, you! I’ve been missing out on some quality hugs so you’ve got a backlog to deal with!” he said, lightly ruffling her hair.

Katrina couldn’t help but laugh. “Balthus, it’s only been a few weeks!” she said.

“Well, that’s still too long for my liking! I barely see you now that you’re in college! So you’re getting all the hugs from your big bro that I can give!”

Claude couldn’t help but smile. Balthus had always been a strange person, but when it came to Katrina he was always there for her. He was the brother she’d always deserved, always should’ve had. Seeing them laugh together made him hope that he was the only brother she had in this life. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight.

This however caught Balthus’ attention. The large man looked at him, letting go of Katrina and placing her down softly. He made his way over, towering over him as he looked Claude over. After getting his fill, he smirked at him. “So you’re the guy who thinks he can date my little sis, huh?”

Claude simply smiled, he’d dealt with these situations before and he could do it again. “I wouldn’t say I’ve gotten that far yet, since we’re only friends. You must be the legendary Balthus, King of Grappling that I’ve heard so much about!” he retorted with a smirk. From the corner of his eye, he could see Katrina holding her face in her hands.

Balthus barked out laughter. “So you know about me! That saves me some trouble!” He cracked his knuckles. “With all that you’ve heard about me this must mean you know what I want with you.”

“Maybe I do, maybe I don’t,” He kept smiling, this would be easy to handle. “What I do know is that Kat here only speaks highly of you. Is it true you’ve never been beaten in a wrestling match? That’s pretty impressive!”

Balthus smirked, clearly happy with his ego being stroked. “Sure have! I still hold a record at my high school! Never been beaten!” he proclaimed. “I’m the King for a reason after all! No one could handle my strength.”

Katrina was shocked at what she was seeing. Was Claude actually going to pull this off? She didn’t dare say anything, she didn’t want to ruin anything. Plus she was curious to see if he could do it.

“Incredible! With someone like you around, I’m sure that Kat doesn’t have to worry about a thing! She’s pretty lucky to have a strong older brother like you.” Claude continued.

“Of course she is!” Balthus laughed, eating up every compliment. “You know what, I think I like you! She may be lucky to have me, but she’s just as lucky to have someone like you as a friend!”

Claude smirked. Just as he’d planned. “I’m honored to hear you say that. I’m glad to know you think so highly of me.”

“Well she does say pretty good things about you, so I figure you’re alright!”

“Good to know I have your seal of approval. Anyhow, you need to get her home, right? You shouldn’t keep her waiting for much longer.”

“Oh yeah, right! That’s the whole reason I showed up in the first place!” Balthus turned to Katrina, who couldn’t help but smile at the scene before her. “You ready to head out?”

She nodded. “Yep, we should get going before it gets dark. Don’t want my parents to worry or anything,” She turned back over to Claude, who gave her a subtle wink. “I’ll see you tomorrow Claude.”

“See you then.” he said with a wave.

Balthus and Katrina got inside the car, Claude watching them as they drove off. Katrina still couldn’t believe that had happened. He’d managed to prevent Balthus from trying to fight him with just words alone. Or maybe he’d gotten so caught up in the praise he’d forgotten that’s what he intended to do? She wasn’t sure. Balthus hadn’t even realized what had happened, at least not in the moment. He probably would later. Still, she couldn’t help but wonder how often he used those kind of skills to his advantage.

\--------------------------------------------

“So what’s up with that braid, anyway?” Katrina asked, pointing at the braid in question with her pencil.

Claude looked up at her. They had met up again at his dorm for another study session, going over history notes and comparing them to each other’s, when she asked the question out of nowhere. There’d been no prompting of any kind, she’d just asked it.

He thought about the small braid he wore on his right side. In their previous life, it had held meaning. Almyrans had all kinds of methods for braiding hair, and growing up there he’d learned them all. Even after he’d gone to Fodlan, he kept wearing that braid because it was significant for young men. He’d wanted to keep a part of his Almyran half with him. In this world however, it held no significance. There was no Almyra, and thus there was no Almyran culture. He hadn’t even tried wearing the braid until he came here and saw her walking by. If he was being honest, he started doing it because he hoped she’d remember somewhat, but obviously that hadn’t happened. It was okay though, if a braid was all it took to get her to remember then it’d be too easy. He did need some kind of explanation though, one that made sense.

“I like wearing braids,” he managed to come up with. “I feel like they give me my own personal flair, you know?”

She rolled her eyes. “I suppose you have a point there. It’s pretty hard to imagine you without it at this point.”

An opportunity came to his mind. “You know, you might look good wearing one. Ever thought about wearing one yourself?”

She looked down at her notebook, taking a strand of hair and messing with it. “I’m not...very good at styling my hair. I can’t sit still long enough for it.”

A familiar reasoning, but he’d gotten through it before and he’d do it again. “I can teach you how to do it. It’s pretty easy and you’ll get the hang of it quickly.” Especially since she’d done it before.

“Oh, no, you don’t have to do that!” She looked back at him. “I wouldn’t want to copy your ‘personal flair’ or anything!”

“Nonsense, it wouldn’t be copying if I’m the one suggesting it to you,” He stood up from the table, grabbing hold of her hand and helping her out of her seat. For a moment he found himself thinking about how nice it was to hold her hand again after a lifetime, it was so warm and soft and familiar. Hopefully he’d be able to hold it again soon and more often. “Come on, let’s give it a shot.” He guided her to the bathroom, despite her protests.

“Claude, really, it’s not that big of a deal! We have notes and homework to go over, shouldn’t we take care of that first?”

“It can wait, this won’t take long,” They entered the bathroom, it wasn’t very big but it could hold two people with ease. He stepped out for a moment, grabbing one of the chairs and setting in down in front of the counter and mirror. He directed Katrina into the chair, then grabbed a fine-tooth comb out of the cabinet. She gave him a nervous look, but he quickly addressed her issues before she could say anything. “Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle with your hair. Just speak up if I pull too hard, okay?”

She nodded back at him, a bit surprised he knew what she was worried about. But of course he knew, it had been a concern in their past life as well. She’d always hated her parents, or anyone for that matter, trying to brush her hair because they always seemed to pull too hard and go too rough. It had gotten to the point that she’d only let herself brush her hair. Well, until he came around. He always made sure to be gentle with her hair, regardless if he was styling it in any manner of Almyran braids or if he was just brushing it. It made him the only person she let style her hair. Though it was also because she found the way he did it relaxing.

He took hold of the left side of her hair, the same place he did it before, and held the comb in the other. “Just watch what I do. You’ll get it easily.” he said. Without waiting for her to speak, he moved the comb through her hair.

She quickly closed her eyes, anticipating the pain from him hitting some snag with the comb. But the pain never came. No pulling, no snags, nothing. Just as he said, he was gentle with her hair. She opened her eyes and saw him slowly move the comb in their reflection, passing it through like it was natural. It felt...relaxing. She couldn’t help but close her eyes again as she let him comb her hair. She soon heard him start humming, though she couldn’t place the song no matter how hard she tried. In a way though, she felt like she’d heard it somewhere before. She opened her eyes again, preparing to ask him what song it was.

But she found that she wasn’t in the bathroom anymore. Now she was sitting in front of a vanity in a bedroom. She couldn’t make out any other details, but somehow she knew she was in a bedroom. Her hair was still being combed, and the humming was still in her ear even though it felt muffled. She could see herself in the mirror, and standing next to her was someone she couldn’t see. But she had a good idea who it was. He too was styling her hair, her left side in particular. He stopped combing, taking three strands of hair in his hand. “Alright, now just watch my hands, memorize what I’m doing.” he said, his voice also muffled. He began to take the strands of hair and turn them into a small braid that went just past her cheek. She watched him closely as he did, noting all the movements in her head. She closed her eyes again as he made the last movements...

“Kat? You still with me?”

She opened her eyes, finding that she was back in the bathroom with Claude. He’d tapped her shoulder with his free hand, holding the nearly finished braid in the other. It had happened again, she’d been daydreaming. “Yeah, I’m fine. It just happened again.”

It’d been over a month since the tea daydream, so Claude was excited to see it happened again. He’d begun to worry it’d been a one off occurrence, but this was proof it could happen again. “Really? What happened this time?” he asked, making the final adjustments.

“I was in a bedroom, in front of a vanity. I was sitting there and someone was braiding my hair, just like you were. I think it was the fiance.”

“Really?” By now she’d been telling him about her dreams often, and more than ever she’d been dreaming about the fiance, dreaming about him. The idea that she was dreaming of their time together made him happy, even if she didn’t know it was him. “Anything else?”

“He was humming, like you were,” she continued. “He’d been combing my hair and then he started braiding it, telling me to watch his hands and memorize what he was doing. So I paid close attention. Just as he was finishing, you brought me back.”

He chuckled. “Well, I can only hope this guy was teaching you the same things I was, though I can always do it again for you if that isn’t the case,” Though he knew it was, if she had dreamt of the day he’d first taught her how to do the braid then it was definitely the same. He put the comb away and looked at them in the mirror. “So, what do you think?”

She looked in the mirror, seeing the new braid that rested on her left side. It looked like the one from her daydream. That had to be a coincidence though, right? Seeing it there felt like she’d found the missing piece of a puzzle. It felt right, seeing her with it there. “I...I like it. I think I’m gonna try it out more often.” she smiled.

“I knew you’d look good with one.” Claude leaned down closer to her, his own braid now side by side with hers and his face close to hers. “Look, we even match!”

Something stirred in Katrina at that moment. She didn’t know if it was the proximity or what he’d said, but something made her heart skip a beat. The two of them...matching? It felt so natural and right to hear him say that. The realization began to dawn on her, and she wasn’t happy about it. “Maybe I shouldn’t wear it around Hilda though, I don’t want her assuming things, after all.” she said, trying to act casual about it.

Claude stood up and smirked. “Oh, she’s gonna assume things no matter what we do. And is it really that bad if she does? You can always counter her with Lorenz after all.”

She thought about it and realized no, it wouldn’t be that bad if she assumed things. But part of her still didn’t want her to assume things, what with her tendency to gossip. She banished the thoughts from her mind, now wasn’t the time to be worrying about it. “True, she’s not very good at hiding it.” She stood up, allowing Claude to grab the chair again.

“Alright, let’s get back to studying.” The two of them returned to the kitchen, though Katrina could hardly focus on studying. Her mind was filled with other thoughts. They wrapped up what was left and she made her way to leave before an unanswered question came to mind.

“Hey Claude, that song you were humming earlier, what was it? I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before.”

He hadn’t expected that. It was an Almyran song, one he’d learned from his mother who learned it from his father. It was a love song, one he found himself humming around her many times. But of course, he couldn’t admit that. “Beats me, I forgot where I learned it. It just came to me. Sorry I can’t help you.”

“Oh, okay. I’ll see you on Monday for lunch then. See ya, Sunflower.”

“See ya.”

The rest of the evening she was plagued with thoughts of her feelings towards him. The moment where his face was next to hers kept coming up over and over again. It was obvious to her. She’d managed to fall in love with Claude, and the idea both excited and frightened her for multiple reasons. She had to talk to someone, someone she could trust not to tell anyone else about this.

She picked up the phone and dialed Marianne’s number. “Hey, it’s me. Can we meet up for lunch tomorrow? I need to talk to you about something. No, it’s nothing dangerous, I just need to talk with you alone about it. It’s not something I feel like I can talk to Hilda about. Sure, I don’t mind going to church with you. Pick me up tomorrow? Alright, see you in the morning.”

With that taken care of, she prepared herself for bed. She looked in the mirror and saw the braid was still there. She skillfully took it out, even though he never told her how to do it. She’d worry about that later, she had a talk tomorrow she needed to prepare for.

That night, she once again dreamed of the fiance, and how he braided her hair while humming to her after she got into an argument with someone. It was relaxing and melted her worries away, even when she rushed to write it down later.


End file.
